Illegal Immigrant Charged With Homicide in Deadly Minnesota School Bus Crash

[Army_of_One]

MINNEAPOLIS - A woman who authorities said did not have a driver's license and was using a false identity was charged Friday with four counts of criminal vehicular homicide in a school bus crash that killed four children.

The woman, who identified herself as Alianiss Nunez Morales, 23, Minneota, Minn., was driving a van that allegedly failed to stop at a stop sign Tuesday before hitting a bus carrying 28 students from Lakeview School, Lyon County Attorney Richard Maes said. Morales was also charged with a stop sign violation and for driving without a license, Maes said.

The accident happened near the small town of Cottonwood, in southwestern Minnesota.

Morales does not have a Minnesota driver's license, and “she doesn't have a (driver's license) anywhere that we're aware of,” said Lt. Mark Peterson of the Minnesota State Patrol.

Authorities said the woman gave them a false name and they believe she is an illegal immigrant. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents said they were trying to figure out the woman's identity.

ICE filed paperwork to detain her for deportation proceedings after the criminal case is resolved, said Claude Arnold, special agent in charge of investigations.

“The only name we have for her is the name she gave us when she was booked,” Arnold said, adding that the woman told authorities she was from Mexico.

“We're going to do everything in our power and authority to ensure justice is served in this case,” he said.

According to the criminal complaint filed Friday, Morales used an interpreter to tell police that she stopped at the stop sign.

“She stated that she stopped for the stop sign and that when she took off, the bus hit her,” according to a statement of probable cause.

Morales also told police she was driving to Norcraft Cabinetry, where she had been working for a month, and it was her first time on County Road 24.

The bus driver and at least one motorist said Morales did not stop at the stop sign, court documents said. The bus driver, Dennis Devereaux, told police it appeared the van wasn't going to stop, and “he did not have time to hit the brakes or accelerate.”

The criminal vehicular homicide charges are felonies, each punishable by as many as 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. The other charges are misdemeanors.

Morales was taken by wheelchair to appear in court Friday and spoke through an interpreter, the Marshall Independent reported. She told the judge she had an aunt in the area.

Manuel Guerrero, an attorney who represented Morales at the hearing, said he was concerned about his client being in jail with injuries, the Independent reported.

Reaction to the charges were mixed in Cottonwood, a town of about 1,150 people about 15 miles north of Marshall.

“I think the focus still is on the grieving process,” said city administrator Greg Isaackson. “The legal process is going to take care of itself. There's nothing the public can do about that.”

At the same time, some wondered if the crash could have been prevented.

“We were angry when we heard that she didn't have a valid license and isn't a citizen. Why was she driving?” asked Phyllis Persoon, whose grandson, Bryce Arends, was the next stop on Devereaux's bus before the crash.

Rep. Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, said he's gotten a “firestorm” of e-mail from people upset to hear the driver may be an illegal immigrant.

“There's just a lot of emotion and upset people, I think rightfully so, and it's a combination of mourning for the victims and the families,” said Seifert, adding that he hoped to bring up legislation aimed at illegal immigration.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty has asked lawmakers for tougher penalties on identity theft and a ban on ordinances in some cities that prevent police from asking people about their immigration status.

Besides what was said in court, little was known about Morales. Pete Van Vooren, owner of Van's Mobile Home Park in Minneota, said the woman had rented a mobile home from a third party and had been living there for only about 2½ weeks.

Five people, four of them students, remained hospitalized at Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center in Sioux Falls, S.D., spokesman Kenyon Gleason said. One student was in serious condition, two were in fair condition, and one was in good condition; the adult at the hospital was in fair condition, he said.

School will be canceled Monday as funeral services for Hunter Javens, 9, and Jesse Javens, 13, are held there.

Visitation for Emilee Olson, 9, was set for today and Sunday before the funeral at Christ Lutheran Church in Cottonwood.

Visitation for Reed Stevens, 12, will be Wednesday and Thursday before the funeral.



Grand Forks Herald

[Army_of_One]

This is why myself and several other citizens have emailed/called the city commissioners about stiffer penalties for people driving with no license. I wonder if (God forbid) something like this happened in Dodge it would change their minds? Would the streets be safer overall if we had a tougher standard? YES We probably have more unlicensed drivers here than the average city with more accidents and such. I ask again why wouldn't our city leaders follow (not asking any of you guys to LEAD God forbid..but at least follow) Garden Cities lead and toughen the laws on drivers without a license. I doubt this would cost an extraordinary amount of money to accomplish and would make our streets just a little bit safer for our families and our children.

[Army_of_One]

oh...and just found this...a real kicker...

n yet another tragedy resulting from the protection sanctuary cities offer illegal immigrants, a woman who had previously pleaded guilty to driving without a valid license slammed her van into a Minnesota school bus this week, killing four children and injuring 14 others.

The illegal alien (Alainiss Morales) ran a stop sign and struck the school bus in Cottonwood, causing it to roll over onto a truck and tragically kill the innocent kids, ages 9 to 13. In 2006 Morales pleaded guilty in nearby Chippewa County to driving without a valid license.

The reckless illegal immigrant continued living, working and driving in Minnesota because the state has three known sanctuary cities—Minneapolis, St. Paul and Worthington—that protect illegal aliens. They officially do it through local resolutions, executive orders or city ordinances. Police in those municipalities also have policies that forbid officers from asking about immigration status.

Minneapolis, where this particular illegal alien evidently lived, made its sanctuary policy official in 2003 by passing an ordinance that bars police from asking about immigration status or enforcing immigration laws. Measures like these allow the state’s estimated 60,000 illegal immigrants to roam freely without fear of being deported.

borderfirereport.net


These local governments’ don’t-ask-don’t-tell policies have enabled illegal immigrants with existing criminal records to remain in the country and commit atrocious crimes against Americans.

Sound familiar to anyone? Dodge City???

[Highwayman]

Do they even give people a trial for something like this in Mexico, or just lock them up and lose the key?

[Army_of_One]

Originally Posted by Highwayman

Do they even give people a trial for something like this in Mexico, or just lock them up and loose the key?

If someone did something like this in Mexico I think they would just send them to the U.S. to work.

[Bubba]

I would rather see them lose the key as opposed to them loose the key. lol

Somebody needs to be a smart@ss, it might as well be me!

[Army_of_One]

Originally Posted by Bubba

I would rather see them lose the key as opposed to them loose the key. lol

Somebody needs to be a smart@ss, it might as well be me!

I thought I had dibs on being the smartass....

[The Drifter]

no you're a different kind of ass

[JayhawkMom]

Drifter........you crack me up!!!

[TexKan]

I think I see a storm brewin!!!!! LMAO